In a post-apocalyptic America where the once-picturesque countryside has become a desolate and violent wasteland, one man (Denzel Washington) fights to protect that sacred tome that could hold the key to the survival of the human race in… MoreIn a post-apocalyptic America where the once-picturesque countryside has become a desolate and violent wasteland, one man (Denzel Washington) fights to protect that sacred tome that could hold the key to the survival of the human race in this futuristic thriller from filmmaking duo Albert and Allen Hughes (From Hell and Dead Presidents). Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis, and Ray Stevenson co-star in the Warner Bros. production. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Consensus:
It's certainly uneven, and many viewers will find that its reach exceeds its grasp, but The Book of Eli finds the Hughes brothers injecting some fresh stylish fun into the kind of post-apocalyptic wasteland filmgoers have seen more than enough of lately.

Laremy Legel

Film.com

The Hughes brothers' film feels more vibrant than the bleak Road, which was launched at us in November. Here the brothers show us the horror but somehow the staid and calm Denzel feels more approachable than the distraught and scrambling Viggo.

Allen and Albert Hughes have created a plausible post-apocalyptic world.

Simon Miraudo

Quickflix

I sat down to The Book of Eli expecting a lecture, and was instead treated to a rollicking action film that evoked the manic ultra-violence of Mad Max rather than the sensitive study of humanity of The Road.

A post apocalyptic hell with plenty of faith thrown in. Good action sequences and the books twist at the end made me smile.

EightThirty .

15/06/2012 (DVD)

Daniel Perry

I fully expected this to be terrible, but three-quarters of the way through, to my surprise, this post-apocalyptic twist on a basic western was still… MoreI fully expected this to be terrible, but three-quarters of the way through, to my surprise, this post-apocalyptic twist on a basic western was still watchable... then, the awful ending was tacked on.
SPOILER FOLLOWS
This is a dystopic film. Contrary to what everyone marketing big-studio films in America seems to believe, all movies need not have a happy ending. Dystopias in particular could be forgiven if they're less than cheery: it's kind of the point. So, 86 minutes in, Gary Oldman shoots Denzel and takes the titular book.
Note to director/writer: THIS IS WHERE THE STORY ENDS.
The next half-hour was completely redundant. Oh, Mila Kunis can be the walker now... until she finds Denzel, not dead. Wait, what? And, second twist, the book (The Bible, seeing that I'm spoiling it anyway), is in braille, because Denzel - like Gary Oldman's wife - is blind. Not to worry: Denzel memorized it! And once he and Mila Kunis reach Alcatraz, where some form of intellignetsia has holed up and begun reconstructing a library (for good, not for evil like Gary Oldman), he just rhymes it off, and the librarian copies it all out.
Puh-lease. What a joke. When Gary Oldman took the book at the 86-minute mark, I thought: great, crisp ending, and maybe a cheesy sequel/trilogy will follow, à la Matrix; in the final 30 minutes, however, they covered all the ground a sequel might, and delivered a resolution to a problem the viewer never knew the plot had (Denzel's blindness). On the whole, this resolution comes not from good plotting, but through a cheap trick. I guess he did have very good hearing and sense of smell, and I can say "sure, heightened because he's blind," leaving aside whether that theory has any truth to it. But to create and resolve a problem this way - after we've left the main character for dead, keep in mind - is disastrous.
Plus, Denzel's just not badass enough to play this character. Give me Sam Jackson! Despite this, and the train wreck of an ending, it's a good enough movie. If you turn it off when Oldman's truck drives away with the book inside, you might even enjoy it. Sigh. Such a wasted opportunity.

Randy Tippy

A Judeo-Christian approach to the apocalypse that falls somewhere between <i>Mad Max</i> and <i>The Road</i>. Great performances from… MoreA Judeo-Christian approach to the apocalypse that falls somewhere between <i>Mad Max</i> and <i>The Road</i>. Great performances from Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman (as usual).

Anthony Lawrie

Among the cliches and bad acting there is a good story in The Book of Eli. I like a good post-apocalyptic movie but I hate the now cliched post-apocalyptic… MoreAmong the cliches and bad acting there is a good story in The Book of Eli. I like a good post-apocalyptic movie but I hate the now cliched post-apocalyptic gangs on Motorcycles, everyone being mean to each other etc , I liked the idea of the Bible being a weapon of sorts though, a way to control that only those born before the 'event' understand. It's quite a clever idea but it gets ridiculously preachy. Sure, save what you can but the whole 'God sent me' storyline is stupid (yeah, thanks for the Apocalypse God, very nice of you, cheers!). Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman are ok, Oldman maybe just a little on the wrong side of over the top but both are in the clear compared to Mila Kunis's performance. Honestly, they should have just animated Meg in there and had done with it. Was that Michael Gambon? I didn't even notice, maybe because I was a little bored towards the end, although I liked the Gary Oldman ending but not the Washington ending so much. *Spoiler* I'm sure if you were to re-watch the film you'd find a scene where Washington obviously isn't blind but who can really be bothered.

xGary Xx

A lone traveller through the post-apocalyptic wastelands of the United States is pursued by the ruler of a ramshackle society who believes a book he carries is… MoreA lone traveller through the post-apocalyptic wastelands of the United States is pursued by the ruler of a ramshackle society who believes a book he carries is the key to expanding his empire. The Book Of Eli is basically a western done in the style of The Road. It contains the usual mix of desolate wastelands populated by Mad Max wannabes shot through high contrast filters, punctuated with occasional bursts of violence to keep the multiplex audiences in their seats in good time for the Hughes brothers to deliver their aimless sermon about the meaning of the word of God. Or something. Eli's book is a slightly clunky metaphor for organised religion and the idea of a malevolent ruler intending to use it to control the population for his own nefarious purposes is actually quite an interesting one. Unfortunately the script is wishy washy and unfocussed, preferring a weak "twist" to any meaningful conclusion leading to the film petering out to a whimper. The superior cast certainly keep it watchable for its duration but the disappointing "finale" makes it all seem empty and pointless. In the end the Hughes brothers aimed for Mad Max Plus and ended up with The Postman 2.

Marc Lewis

In 2010, two of my top 20 movies of all time came out. The first was "The Wolfman". "The Book of Eli" was the 2nd. Oscar worthy… MoreIn 2010, two of my top 20 movies of all time came out. The first was "The Wolfman". "The Book of Eli" was the 2nd. Oscar worthy performances, great script, awesome fight scenes, good message. I honestly believe this was one of the truly great movies of the decade.
There was one thing I really didn't like about the movie. I felt that there was way too much swearing. It really didn't think it matched the tone of the movie, and it would have been better without the constant use of f-bombs and s-bombs.
However, if you can ignore the swearing, this is a really good film. The strength has got to be the acting. Gary Oldman as the ruthless Carnegie is probably the best villain performance I have seen since Heath Ledger as The Joker. Denzel Washington was amazing too, pulling off a energetic and realistic role as Eli, an iPod listening, shotgun weilding, King James Bible protecting wanderer, trying to bring the world's last King James Bible to it's rightful place. Mila Kunis did a very solid, while not spectacular performance as Solara, a servant to Carnegie who helps Eli on his quest to protect the world's last King James Bible. I also thought that Ray Stevenson pulled of a surprisingly good job as Redridge, one of Carnegie's henchmen with a soft spot for Solara.
The script was really good too. Seriously, this is one of the 10 best scripts I've ever heard. There is one line by Eli in particular that I really liked. That's not to say that the great majority of Eli's lines aren't spectacular. They absolutley are.
The fight scenes were downright amazing. I felt like I was watching a fight scene from "3:10 to Yuma" only better and with modern weapons. I particularly liked Eli's first confrontation with Carnegie.
Over all, I actually truly believe this was better than a lot of movies that made the oscars. Truly superior and underrated film. Truly.

Jameson Worley

I originally had no intention of seeing this movie, but I had a free rental so I gave it a shot. It is a really good movie. The action is great. It is a really… MoreI originally had no intention of seeing this movie, but I had a free rental so I gave it a shot. It is a really good movie. The action is great. It is a really enjoyable film. It even throws a little religion into the mix.

Manu Gino

Some will kill to have it. He will kill to protect it.
Saw it again! Great Movie! This movie really gets into the religious side of life and it shows how many… MoreSome will kill to have it. He will kill to protect it.
Saw it again! Great Movie! This movie really gets into the religious side of life and it shows how many people lose faith in each other, with others, and towards god especially meanwhile there's others too that do whatever it takes to defend there faith no mattter what. There's a clear message behind this movie even though it's kinda harsh and rebellious but the movie really delivers and demonstrate how even though people are how they are they can change with a book and a little faith.
Eli (Denzel Washington) has been on a journey for 30 years, walking west across America after a cataclysmic war that turned the earth into a total wasteland. The world has become a lawless civilization where people must kill or be killed. The barren roads belong to gangs of cutthroats who rob and kill for water, a pair of shoes, a lighter, or just for fun. Eli is a peaceful man who only acts in self defense, and becomes a warrior with unbelievable killing skills when he is challenged. After the war and the "Big Flash", Eli was guided by a higher power to a hidden book and given the task of protecting the book and taking it to its final destination. Eli guards the book with his life, because he knows that the book is the only hope that humanity has for its future.

Red Lats

Generally this is a pretty good film. Always fun to watch the good guy triumph over evil. But the details are a bit of a stretch. I had to go check out the… MoreGenerally this is a pretty good film. Always fun to watch the good guy triumph over evil. But the details are a bit of a stretch. I had to go check out the plot in Wikipedia to confirm what I saw was what I was supposed to see. So I would give it 3 1/2 stars for a good scorched post-apocalypse world, but take off 1 star for unbelievability.

Edward Boxler

The twist at the end will leave you confused and bewildered, and you'll either want to watch this movie again, or you will throw your hands up and scream,… MoreThe twist at the end will leave you confused and bewildered, and you'll either want to watch this movie again, or you will throw your hands up and scream, "what the fuck was that?!" But despite your reaction, The Book Of Eli is an incredible experience. It takes place in a post-Apocalyptic America, but it's a western at heart.
The Hughes Brothers are very good at creating this world. With the help of CGI, they've scorched the skies, piled cars upon cars, and depicted vast deserts of wreckage as far as the eye can see. This is probably the first post-Apocalyptic action film that reaches and achieves an epic scope.
The action scenes are incredibly well staged, with some fantastic camera work and seamless editing. Some of the scenes are over quickly, but they're amazing to watch. Thanks to this, there is never a dull moment, not to mention Denzel, Gary Oldman, and Mila Kunis are all great. Gary Oldman hasn't played someone this evil since the corrupt cop in Leon.
As to the religious undertones - the whole basis of the plot is Denzel Washington carrying and protecting a Bible from savages far and wide - the story is more so a cry for a species that is desperately in need of saving. This is a brave film because instead of questioning the authenticity of religious faith, it dares to suggest the possibility that God is real. Westerns are always based around a sole hero who saves an entire town from evil. Eli does just that. But who is protecting Eli while he protects those who are persecuted? It's an aspect that turns the genre on its head, and the ending result is a great action picture.

Jim Careter

A awesome cool movie. The story was awesome, and the acting was okay. The movie had some good action scenes, but I had a few problems with the ending. Mila… MoreA awesome cool movie. The story was awesome, and the acting was okay. The movie had some good action scenes, but I had a few problems with the ending. Mila Kunis is already the most beautiful actress in Hollywood, and now she one of the best rising stars. The production was great and a cool vision of the apocolypse. So why did I only give it 3,5, because I didn't think the ending was cool enough, some parts in the movie didn't make sense, and Denzels acting was just okay.